Today, we had the pleasure of welcoming again Rev. Benedict Muthusami of Open Doors International to join us in marking the International Day Of Prayer For The Persecuted Church 2013.
Rev. Benedict led us through a short time of devotion based on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 – focusing on the Body of Christ, the persecuted church, and how “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.”
He also shared with us about the World Watch List for 2013 – a ranking of 50 countries where persecution of Christians for religious reasons is worst. First of all, the list covers persecution of Christians of all denominations in the entire country. The focus is on persecution for their faith, not persecution for political, economic, social, ethnic or accidental reasons.
As he was sharing with us about the persecution of Christians – he also shared with us a very inspiring message from the brothers and sisters who are facing persecution. He said, “The persecuted church does not even ask for anything, or even for the persecution to end. Only that the universal church remembers them in prayer.”
So from there, he led us to a time of praying for the persecuted church. Using prayer guides that symbolized parts of the body, we gathered into various groups and prayed for persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in various countries.
If you feel that you want to do more to support the work of Open Doors International or to play your part to encourage Christians who are being persecuted, there is a list of action items you can consider over here.
Let’s do our part today! Just 5 minutes, can make a difference – especially in prayer.
